# Gentoo penguin (*Pygoscelis papua*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/gentoo-penguin  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua) is a bird in the penguin family Spheniscidae, order Sphenisciformes. It is a medium-sized, marine, aquatic predator with a representative adult body mass of 5.9 kg and reported values from 5.3 to 6.1 kg. It lays 2 eggs per clutch and 1 clutch per year, incubates them for 37 days and reaches sexual maturity at 2.2 years. The species is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not an IUCN threatened category, and it is partially migratory.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 5.29 kg – 6.13 kg |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 13 years |
| Diet | Aquatic predator |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 35 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | marine |
| Egg incubation | 37 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2 |
| Age at maturity | 2 years – 2.5 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Lifestyle | Aquatic |
| Migration | Partial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Sphenisciformes
- family: Spheniscidae
- genus: Pygoscelis
- species: *Pygoscelis papua* (J. R. Forster, 1781)

Synonyms: *Aptenodytes papua*, *Pygosceles wagleri*, *Pygoscelis wagleri*

## Common questions

### How heavy is a gentoo penguin?

The gentoo penguin has a representative adult body mass of 5.9 kg, with reported values from 5.3 to 6.1 kg.

### What does the gentoo penguin eat?

It is an aquatic predator and a carnivore.

### Is the gentoo penguin endangered?

No. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not an IUCN threatened category.

### How long does a gentoo penguin live?

Its lifespan is given as 13 years, with values up to 35 years reported by sources.

### How many eggs does a gentoo penguin lay?

It lays 2 eggs per clutch and has 1 clutch per year, with an incubation period of 37 days.

### What kind of animal is the gentoo penguin?

It is a bird, a penguin in the family Spheniscidae and order Sphenisciformes.

### When does a gentoo penguin reach sexual maturity?

It reaches sexual maturity at 2.2 years, with reported values from 2.0 to 2.5 years.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Gentoo penguin (Pygoscelis papua). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/gentoo-penguin